MCANDREWS CIRCUS SHOT GIVES SAGEHENS DRAMATIC WIN IN NEIGHBORHOOD BATTLE

Claremont, Calif. - Senior guard Kyle McAndrews made an acrobatic shot in the lane and drew a foul to convert a three-point play with 5.4 seconds left and give the Pomona-Pitzer Men's Basketball team a thrilling 58-57 win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Saturday evening at Voelkel Gymnasium in the annual Sixth Street Rivalry game between inter-consortium rivals. 

With the win, the Sagehens improve to 4-12 overall and 2-5 in the SCIAC with their second straight win. CMS falls to 12-4 overall and 5-2 in the league with the loss. 

Tyler Gaffaney (24 points) hit a big three-pointer late and hit two foul shots to give CMS a four-point lead in the final minute. Junior forward Gibson Farone-Collins made a tough bank shot in the paint to cut it to two, and after the Stags missed two foul shots, McAndrews drove the lane into a double team, but was able to double-clutch and make a twisting shot from the edge of the paint as he drew a foul.

After a CMS timeout, McAndrews hit the go-ahead foul shot and an end to end rush from Gaffaney resulted into a 25-foot miss before the buzzer. Senior guard Joe Eyen corralled the ball in the corner as the horn blew, giving the Sagehens their second straight win in the Sixth Street series. 

It was the second time in McAndrews' career that he has won a Sixth Street Rivalry game with a foul shot late. As a freshman in 2011-12, he hit three free throws with 0.4 seconds left to give Pomona-Pitzer a 51-50 win.

The second half saw several momentum swings. After CMS held a narrow lead at the break (22-21), the Sagehens came out with renewed energy, and took a 40-31 lead on another circus shot and foul from McAndrews. The Sagehens went cold for a while, though, and CMS methodically chipped away as Jack Grodahl hit a couple of three-pointers and the Stags converted eight foul shots to pull ahead 46-43. 

Senior guard Michael Cohen then stepped up for Pomona-Pitzer with a personal 6-0 run, hitting two tough 18-foot jumpers and a pair of foul shots to give the Sagehens a 49-46 lead with 5:20 left. The teams exchanged baskets for a couple minutes before a Shelby Lane tip-in gave CMS a one-point lead at 52-51 with 2:20 to go. 

After McAndrews missed two foul shots, Gaffaney appeared to hit a back-breaking three-pointer at the 1:42 mark to make the lead 55-51, but the Sagehens called a timeout and Farone-Collins hit a clutch 15-footer to give Pomona-Pitzer new life. Senior guard Adrian Brandon appeared to have a key defensive play for Pomona-Pitzer as he blocked Gaffaney's 18-footer with 40 seconds left, but he was called for the foul and Gaffaney hit the two foul shots to push the lead back to four. 

McAndrews finished the game with 16 points to lead four Sagehens in double figures, as Eyen added 11 points and Cohen and Farone-Collins each had 10. Gaffaney had a game-high 24 and Nick Lund added 10 off the bench for CMS. 

Pomona-Pitzer is back in action on Tuesday when it travels to Caltech for a 7:30 p.m. contest. 

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